The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1887-11-17
coffee IN Guatemala.

Earl Marble has been travelling in Guate-
mala and Mexico Che is in the latter country
now, as a correspondent of several Western
periodicals. The following is from an arti-
Gle in the California Golden Era ON the Guat-
emala coffee industry;
"Tbe coffee industry is one of the most i'm
portant in the country. The coffee belt be-
gins at an elevation of about twelve hundred
feet above the sea level and continues till a
height of thirty-fiye hundred is reached. The
best area is between eighteen hundred and
three thousand. The extreme upper and
lower belts are not so favorable for the best
growths.
sights in the world. The trees are generally
eight or twelve feet apart, though often eigh-
teen The coffee tree looks like cherry
tree, especially when loaded with fruit, which
resembles ripe OK heart cherry, and which
is pulpy when perfectly ripe. The fruit is
picked by hand, and is not allowed to be
knocked off. The pulp is never eaten, and
the fruit, just as picked, is spread out over
floors of tile to dry in the sun. When thor
oughly dried, the fruit Is run into tanks OF
water, where 1t is soaked till the skin is soft
enough to be cracked by being run through
mills somewhat similar to California arastra
except that the pressure is lighter. Beneath
this skin is found another one. to remove
which the fruit is soaked again, and run
through another mill Of less pressure than
the first. 1t is then thrown into revolving
screens, the first one with large and !hl
last one with a very small mesh. Every
grain is handled four or I'VE times. After ale
the processes. the grains are put into a
smaller screen, and revolved at high rate
of speed to give the berry a burnish. The
great cost OF coffee is in the handling.
Large dealers in the vicinity OF the planta-
ton buy green coffee at from half a cent to
cent and a half pound. and their expense
In getting it ready for market Is five or six
cents more. by this it will be seen that the
entire cost does not exceed eight cents
pound. AT liberal estimate it can be seen
that coffee can be landed in San Francisco or
San Diego at ten cents pound, with mar
gin for profit. 1t is safe to say that the deal
ers make all the profit on ordinary grades OF
coffee above ten cents.
"The finest grade of Guatem Ia coffee is
the caracOl, named from the snail-shell which
it resembles. 1t is called the pea-berry in the
trade. 1t resembles Mocha coffee, and it is
sold for Mocha by many dealers who, while
parching, put into the cylinder bit of the
essential oil of Mocha. But this is needless
swindle, as the caracoi has fine flavor OF its
own.
Caracol is the last picking. and the berry
is undeveloped. At the first picking, both
seeds are full. plump and Of equal Size. At
the second picking, one seed Is undeveloped
and is smaller than the other. At the third
picking, the result of which is the caracol,
one seed is larger still and doubles over and
dwarfs the other. until seemingly there is
but one seed, which possesses all the strength
of both. This brand of coffee costs from
twelve to fifteen cents to land in any Of our
cities, and it is equal In every way to Mocha
coffee, for which it is sold frequently at an
enormous profit, as can be seen.
''The coffee tree needs warm air, but shade
as well. The heavy growths OF rank tree
vegetation furnish the latter in Guatemala.
1t could be grown successfully in California
il large sheds were erected to provide the
shade. 1t will stand even light frost"